Lawyer Network News

Alberta Lawyer News

Man refutes murder allegations

Kevin Rubletz is denying that he had a hand in the death of his former girlfriend, Jessica Newman, whose body was found in May.

Newman was first reported missing in March before her body was found in a ditch.

Rubletz and Newman shared a child and had been reportedly locked in a custody battle.

Calgary criminal lawyer Brendan Miller is representing Rubletz, who is facing a second-degree murder in relation to Newman's death.

Miller said that he is still waiting for the disclosure from the Crown and that there is a possibility that his client will be seeking bail.

Human Rights Commission of Alberta slapped with $3.35-million lawsuit

Posted Feb 10, 2015 on www.cbc.ca

Arman Chak, a lawyer in Edmonton, has filed a lawsuit against the Human Rights Commission of Alberta claiming $3.35 million for wrongful dismissal and defamation.

Chak alleged that he was fired unceremoniously and was not given a valid reason why he was being let go abruptly.

The lawyer claimed that in the a little more than 11 years that he has worked for the commission, the reviews of his performance have always been the highest.

Chak also claimed that it was not his immediate superior, Audrey Dean, who fired him and that Dean, who was on leave, did not even know about his termination.

The lawyer also alleged that he was defamed when the commission gave statements that were misleading with regards to his termination.

The commission, which has yet to file a statement of defence, refused to give a comment about the issue and cited that the matter was already before the courts.

Man gets jail for driving through the courts

Posted Feb 05, 2015 on calgaryherald.com

Jaren Wayne Feser was handed a sentence of eight months for driving his truck through the Calgary Courts Centre and causing a damage of almost $80,000.

He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and mischief. The fact that he had deliberately made the Courts his target made the incident more serious.

The incident happened a couple of hours after midnight and was recorded on a surveillance camera.

Although Feser never explained his actions to the police, his lawyer, Inayat Jetha of Calgary, told the court that his client did it because of his religious belief.

The judge also ordered Feserto pay a restitution of only $18,000.

Man gets jail for sexually abusing young boys

Posted Feb 05, 2015 on www.edmontonsun.com

Sean Michael Hudson was sentenced to 54 months in jail after he submitted a guilty plea to allegations that he sexually abused four young boys from 2012 to 2014.

Hudson, however, will only be spending three years and six months in jail after he was credited for months he spent in custody while awaiting trial.

During the sentencing, the mothers of the victims narrated to the court how Hudson had manipulated their families so he could get to their sons. At least one of them advised Hudson to seek help.

Edmonton defence lawyer Mike Danyluik, representing, Hudson, said his client admitted to the accusations because he did not want his victims to go through the trial. He is also owning full liability for his actions.

Aside from the jail sentence, he will be spending the rest of his life with his name registered in the national sex offender list.

Hudson was ordered to submit his DNA and is to stay away for 10 years from places frequented by minors.

Man pleads guilty to dangerous driving, hit-and-run

Posted Feb 03, 2015 on www.edmontonjournal.com

Brandon James Hudson submitted a guilty plea to several counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and hit-and-run in relation to an incident which happened in the afternoon of September 24 last year.

While high on drugs, Hudson had stolen his stepfather's sedan and drove through the streets inflicting injury to several people.

Hudson, however, could not remember anything that happened on that fateful day, according to Edmonton lawyer Anna Konye, who is defending him.

Hudson's atrocities did not stop when his very damaged vehicle refused to start, he tried to flee the police on foot and when he was finally detained, he attacked his cellmate.

The Crown prosecutor told the court that at the time of his arrest, Hudson was mumbling about people going after him and how he could not escape them.

A hearing for his sentencing has yet to be scheduled as Hudson has been ordered to go through a psychiatric exam.

Canada Lawyer News

Manufacturer knew Cold-FX wasn’t effective, says lawyer

John Green, a litigator in Vancouver, is alleging that Valeant Pharmaceuticals know that the Cold-FX was not much of a remedy for cold and flu but decided to withhold this vital information.

Green is spearheading a class action lawsuit against the manufacturer of Cold-FX which he filed in British Columbia and Saskatchewan, for falsely claiming that by taking it, one's immune system will be boosted therefore staving off an onset of cold or flu.

The lawyer has also alleged that research do not support the claims of the Cold-FX manufacturer.

The lawsuit, which was initially filed back in 2012, is now awaiting certification from the B.C. Supreme Court.

The lawsuit, however, has no claim amount. Green explained that this is because the lawsuit covers every box of Cold-FX sold under the false claim.

Should it be proven that indeed the Cold-FX does not relieve cold and flu and that its manufacturer lied about it, then Canadians could asked to be refunded for the boxes of Cold-FX they bought.

Defence lawyer to oppose forfeiture of client's bail

Posted Jan 08, 2016 on www.calgarysun.com

Calgary criminal defence lawyer Gavin Wolch is adamant that the Court has no right to hand over the bail money of his convicted client, Nicholas Rasberry, to the Crown.

Rasberry was convicted of manslaughter for stabbing to death Craig Kelloway in May of 2013. The two were drinking before the incident.

Rasberry was originally charged with murder but it was downgraded to manslaughter because the judge found that Rasberry was prompted into killing Kelloway, whom he said tried to sexually assault him.

However, before Rasberry could be sentenced, he had breached one of the conditions of his bail, that is consuming alcohol. He was caught during a Checkstop.

Hersh Wolch, a defence lawyer practicing in Winnipeg, said the forfeiture proceedings should not be allowed because Rasberry was not on bail anymore when the Crown filed the application as he had been sentenced already.

Gavin Wolch wants to get the matter done and over with because he says his client is seeking another bail as he will be appealing the verdict.

Calgary lawyers worried for their clients' health

Posted Jun 30, 2015 on www.huffingtonpost.ca

Calgary lawyers Shamsher Kothari and Stephen Bitzer are asking for a sentence of between eight to 10 years for their clients who have been convicted for their involvement in a Ponzi scheme considered as one of the biggest in Canada.

Kothari fears that his client, Milowe Brost, 61, might die in jail due to his poor health should he be given a longer sentence.

Bitzer, for his part, said that even a 10-year sentence is too long for his 71-year-old client, Gary Sorenson.

The lawyer added that 10 years is akin to a life sentence for Sorenson at his age.

Brost and Sorenson were convicted last February of fraud and theft while Brost was also found liable of laundering money.

The sentencing judge is expected to make a decision later as the court has yet to review about 800 requests for restitution from victims.

Calgary immigration lawyer said it is not over for his client yet

Posted Jun 30, 2015 on www.cbc.ca

Legal options have not run out for Imam Abdi Hersy despite losing his refugee protection status, according to Raj Sharma, the immigration lawyer from Calgary.

Sharma said that Hersy will be appealing the decision handed down by the Immigration and Refugee Board at the Federal Court.

The board's decision is in relation to the sexual charges that Hersy is facing in Minnesota, USA, where he used to work as a respiratory therapist in 2006.

At that time, Hersy came to Canada and successfully got himself protection as a refugee of Somalia.

The Canadian Border Services Agency, however, accused Hersy of mispresentation and worked on stripping him of his refugee status in 2013.

The agency succeeded but Hersy appealed his case to the Federal Court which sided with him.

Sharma said Hersy hopes for a repeat of that compassion that the Federal Court had shown him then.

Hersy had maintained his innocence against the sexual allegations and that issues with his immigration had kept him from proving he is not guilty.

Man imprisoned for dangerous driving

Posted Jun 26, 2015 on www.edmontonsun.com

Brandon James Hudson was meted with a prison term of two years and seven months after admitting to dangerous driving causing bodily harm.

Hudson also pleaded guilty to hit and run, stealing a vehicle, not stopping at the scene of an accident, breaches and assault.

Four people were injured as a result of Hudson's antics.

The Edmonton resident, however, does not remember any detail of what he had done to have been slapped with the several charges as he had been too high on drugs at the time of the incident.